The old specter of socialism is alive and well across the world and this has made the enemies of the working class and progress very uncomfortable. Across the world, the 21st Century has seen people engaging with avowedly socialist parties or socialist leaders, be it in France, the UK, Sri Lanka or even the US – bastion of anti socialism – we see where the idea of socialism and an alternative to what capitalism has to offer has resurfaced.
Socialism and Communism were thought to have been defeated and buried with the fall of the Soviet Union over 30 years ago. Those in charge have had a generation to indoctrinate people with the idea that capitalism is the only way and that there is no alternative. But just as night follows day, ideas of socialism and communism creep into people’s thinking as they look to imagine a different world or why the world is the way it is.
Even in Jamaica we are seeing where the idea of socialism and communism still have the ability to spur the imagination. A whole segment of the PNP for example will go to their graves as socialists who feel the party has reneged on its socialist principles. A whole segment of the population, albeit older now, were firmly in the socialist international camp and backed countries with socialist governments like Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Angola.
Why does the idea of socialism still hold, decades after the ignominious fall of the first socialist project? Is it because those believers are just young idealists, is it because they do not truly understand the system under which they live or is it because, as some believe, they just want to see the world burn? The obvious answer is none of these. Yes, many who now flirt with socialism are young, but that has nothing to do with idealism.
The history of the socialist project is one which has been hidden so those young people who act like they have found a hidden treasure which they must share with the world are not being idealist in their zeal to share. If the information were readily available and taught in schools we would not have what is termed as idealism, but since it is, such zeal is welcome and necessary to educate people on the subject.
What generally attracts people to socialism is not the idea of attaining power; in the grand scheme of things socialist parties rarely hold onto the reins of power and often find themselves in positions of opposition. While the mid to late 20th century has seen some socialist parties hold office, it should be noted that this is after they have abandoned key platforms for worker empowerment instead seeking to create welfare states. In countries where these platforms were not abandoned, such as Japan and Germany, they have been excluded from power and even faced varying degrees of repression.
People don’t become socialists and communists for power, they embrace the ideology because it answers the questions of why the capitalist system operates the way it does; Why the rich get richer and the poor stay poor. It is one thing to know that this oppression takes place — everyone knows that their bosses screw them over — but when we figure out the reasons why they screw us over, that they must screw us over as a course of doing business, then action becomes possible. People become socialists and communists because with the answer of why the system operates the way it does we can then begin to imagine a world operating in a different mode.
As the capitalist imperialist powers enter their decline people naturally begin to look for alternatives. When the liberal order fails to deliver on the promises which it has made people will start to ask if another way is possible. This is what we are living through now. As countries like the US and blocs like the EU continue their accelerated decline and wealth and standard of living improvements move to places like China and Vietnam, people will begin to ask what models they used to grow.
As workers continue to have their rights whittled away to the point that in many cases they are worse off than their parents, people will begin to ask why this exploitation is the rule of the day and if something can be done about it. As the liberal order continues to fail in providing things like stable healthcare, education and living environments, people will continue to seek alternative ways of social organisation.
This flirtation with the left has resulted in the capitalist class doubling down and backing those on the far right as seen in places like France, the UK, and US, all of which have seen major pushback against their socialist parties and leaders and the emergence of an emboldened far right. In countries like Jamaica which has a small but growing socialist movement we must not feel like we are immune to this growing pushback.
It is not enough to have the ideas or read the right books. That will not stop the onslaught of far right forces which are being activated. Those who find themselves on the left wing of politics must not find themselves talking in silos or looking down on people for thinking differently but instead must be organising with fellow travellers so change can be made. True change will not come from some foreign funded NGO, nor will it come from a ruling class which has shown itself unable to implement the needed changes.
Those on the left must not fall in the trap of those who came before and believe that the world is all positive progress. Things can and do go backwards and we must be ready for the challenges. Those in power will do all they can to stop worker progress, but that does not mean the struggle ends. The groans and hauntings of the specter may be dampened but they can’t be locked up forever and the specter will reappear as soon as the chance arises. Socialism is the shadow of capitalism and so long as man exploits man and their labour, socialism will exist. It is not a fad or a passing phase, it is a critical assessment of how society is organised and provides an alternative to what we currently live in. It is the ghost which haunts the system.
